Plea deal ruled out for US cop who shot Aussie dead

Former US policeman Mohamed Noor will face trial for killing Australian Justine Damond Ruszczyk.

Justine with fiance Don Damond.

Former US policeman Mohamed Noor will face trial for killing Australian Justine Damond Ruszczyk after prosecutors yesterday ­revealed they had not offered him a plea deal.

Mr Noor, 32, appeared for less than five minutes in a Minneapolis court and entered no plea to charges of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter for the shooting death of Ruszczyk, 40, in July last year.

Prosecutors told the court there had been no offers or discussions of a plea deal for Mr Noor, who has previously indicated that he will argue he acted in self-­defence when shooting the Australian at point-blank range.

Prosecutors said they had received a “large volume” of material from Mr Noor’s defence team ­during the discovery process.

Wearing a suit and tie, and followed by a large press pack, Mr Noor did not speak during the hearing. His lawyer, Thomas Plunkett, said he would discuss with prosecutors and the judge a timetable for future hearings.

Mr Noor was charged on March 20 and released after posting a $US400,000 bail.

In court documents filed last month, Mr Noor’s legal team said he would plead not guilty to the charges on the grounds that he acted in self-defence and used reasonable force under the ­circumstances because he feared for his life.

Ruszczyk was shot at night as she ­approached Mr Noor’s police car in her pyjamas after having called 911 to report a possible sexual assault in an alley behind her home. Mr Noor has refused to give evidence but his partner that night, Matthew Harrity, has said that Ruszczyk startled the officers as their car was emerging from an ­alleyway.

Officer Harrity said he suddenly “heard a voice, a thump somewhere behind him on the squad car, and caught a glimpse of a person’s head and shoulders outside his window”. According to the charge sheet: “Officer Harrity said he was startled and said ‘oh shit,’ or ‘oh Jesus’. He said he perceived his life was in danger’.”

But Hennepin County ­Attor­ney Mike Freeman has ­accused Mr Noor of “recklessly and intentionally firing his handgun from the passenger seat in disregard for human life”.

“There is no evidence that officer Noor encountered a threat, ­appreciated a threat, investigated a threat and confirmed a threat that justified his decision to use deadly force,” he said.

Cameron Stewart is also US contributor for Sky News Australia.